CSCCE Community Manager Certification Program – More information available and live info sessions!

In July we announced that in 2023 we’ll be launching a new certification program for STEM Community Managers, building on our foundational training Scientific Community Engagement Fundamentals. Since we made that announcement, we’ve been listening to feedback and working on some details. 

In this blog post, we share some updates, including when the first cohort will begin their course of study and how you can let us know that you plan on enrolling. We also share when we’ll be hosting info sessions so that you can get quick answers to any questions you might have, and how your organization can sponsor the program if you’d like to support the participation of others. 

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December Community Call: Our Annual Potluck

We like to send the year off with a little bit of fun, mixed with some contemplation and so for our December community call we’ll be hosting our fourth annual end-of-year potluck. This year, we’ll be focusing on tech tools for supporting community management on a shoestring budget! 

As with most CSCCE events, this call will with be an interactive opportunity to:

  • Try out some new ideas and/or tools that may be relevant for managing your own community
  • Meet and connect with other STEM community managers to learn from one another
  • Take an intentional moment in busy schedules to reflect and identify progress made and potential next steps in your own work

Rather than everyone bringing a dish to share, as is typical at most potlucks, all participants are welcome to bring examples of tools that they’ve used to solve specific problems – or problems in search of a tool! We’ll structure the meal (see below) so there’s time to share and time to learn.  

Join us via Zoom on 14 December at 11am EST / 4pm UTC, and feel free to wear a festive hat or sweater to liven up our Zoom screens 🙂 

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This month’s community call will be a virtual potluck. Attendees are asked to bring a low-budget tech tool to share – or a scenario they’ve encountered that they are looking for a tool to solve. Image credit: CSCCE
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CEF Reunion Recap: Graduates from 10 cohorts convened to celebrate 2 years of CEF!

Last week, we hosted two back-to-back (virtual) reunion celebration events, bringing together graduates from our foundational online training course, Scientific Community Engagement Fundamentals (CEF). It’s two years since we launched the pilot of the course, and since then almost 200 learners have participated. So, we wanted to mark the occasion with a celebration!!

Participants in the Thursday, 17 November reunion event!
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Announcing digital badges for CSCCE’s multi-week trainings

With the rollout of several new courses in CSCCE’s training catalog comes a new credential to recognize our learners’ professional development: digital badges! These badges, which are only awarded to learners who complete all course requirements, can be displayed on personal websites, social media profiles, or as part of a digital CV or resume. 

In this post, we share a bit about what it means to receive a digital badge from CSCCE, and how you can earn these badges along a path to certification as a Scientific Community Manager. 

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CSCCE Community Tools Trial Recap: Virtual escape rooms in Gather

In the second of our Summer 2022 community tools trials, CSCCE staff members Adrienne and Katie and several members of our community of practice met to “Escape the Island” in Gather. We actually ended up trying to escape a dungeon labyrinth (read on to find out why!) and explored how best to use these tools at virtual networking events. 

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Announcing the CSCCE Community Manager Certification Program

Today we’re announcing a new professional development opportunity for STEM community managers: the CSCCE Community Manager Certification Program. The program is intended to support graduates of our Scientific Community Engagement Fundamentals (CEF) course further hone their community management skills, produce immediately applicable outputs for their current role, and continue to benefit from cohort-based learning with their peers, one of the hallmarks of CSCCE trainings. 

With today’s announcement, we’re seeking your feedback on how best to finalize our plans. We strive to provide programming and resources that meet the needs of our learners and community members, so before we put the finishing touches on the certification program, we’re asking for your feedback. We’ve made a very brief survey that will ask you about your preferences when it comes to learning options (following a certification path or taking standalone courses), scheduling, and any barriers that might prevent you from participating. 

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CSCCE Community Tools Trial Recap: A “Butter” way to Zoom?

CSCCE tools trials resumed for a short run of three sessions on Wednesday, 13 July 2022. A combination of CSCCE staff and community of practice members spent 60 minutes trying out the facilitation platform Butter, and in this blog post we share some of the features we tried and what we thought. 

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The long haul: Understanding STEM community sustainability as a systems challenge

At the end of April 2022, CSCCE’s Director Lou Woodley co-developed a session on sustainability in community projects for the National Organization of Research Development Professionals conference with Melissa Vaught (University of Washington), Jennifer Glass (Eastern Michigan University), Connie Johnson (Umass Chan Medical School), and Jessica Moon (Stanford Aging and Ethnogeriatrics Transdisciplinary Collaborative Research Center).

In this guest blog post, Melissa, who is also a member of CSCCE’s community of practice for STEM community managers, recaps the goals and outcomes of the session.

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Tools trials are back this summer!

Ever wanted to test out a new platform or app but needed some more users to make it worthwhile? That’s what CSCCE tools trials are for!

And this summer we’ll be hosting a short series of three tools trials to try out Butter (a tool for administering breakout rooms), Gather (specifically their new escape room), and a third tool of your choosing (let us know what you’d like to trial here). 

Read on for more information, including calendar invites and what to expect! 

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May’s community call recap: Creating virtual events that meet people where they are

Two years after the pandemic pushed the majority of events online, we invited community members to discuss when virtual and hybrid formats work well, when they work poorly, and the tools that lead to success.

We also hosted a co-working session, during which we worked on a virtual events glossary and an updated version of our guidebook of curated virtual events resources – two items we’ll release soon. In this blog post, we offer some of the key takeaways from this month’s community call, in the hopes that it helps you plan engaging and inclusive events. 

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